Irretrievable Redemption
by MyTwistedTruth
Summary: Sometimes the same mistake can cross generations. Is redemption always irretrievable? Chapter Two up!
1. Prologue: Letting Go is Never Easy

Everything that doesn't belong to me probably belongs to one of the following: Harry Potter (duh), Charmed, The Secret Texts, Buffy, The Otherworld. I like mix & matching!

Another rewrite. But I think it may work better this way and it means I get to give it all a bit more depth. The next chapter will be set in 1946 from Maria's POV. For some reason it made sense to write the end of the story and stick it at the beginning...

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Sarah - JUNE 1996

I heard Draco yell something behind me and whirled, for a second terrified they'd been caught, to see the hippogriff dive at the pair of them. I hesitated, I could help them - Goddammit that was my husband over there! I reached slowly into my pocket for my wand and my fingers brushed against the envelope rolled up next to it. For tonight that had to be more important. I backed up over the perimeter of the grounds and Apparated to the Manor, not to the feet of our master where I should be but to the guest room where Aiden lay sound asleep. A sign of how screwed we were.

I watched him sleep for a second lost in the sight of his tight black curls, his little fingers curled up around his face... I almost bottled right there. If I went down the hall, threw myself at his feet, begged... It would make no difference. I shook him awake gently.  
"Aiden, come on Aidie, we gotta go..." His black eyes focused on me for a second before closing again. I reached under the bed where I'd hidden the baby bag earlier, full of his clothes, his favourite teddy, his firetruck, his fake wand... Tears rolled down my face unbidden and uncontrollably. I told myself again that this was his only chance of survival, his only chance of fulfilling the destiny the Fates had planned for him but at the end of the day it didn't matter how many times I told myself or how I worded it. I was abandoning my child to an uncertain fate. My strength (or cowardice) to do it came from the certainty that his parents were screwed, especially after tonight. I would die before I faced Azkaban and I would die before I let them take my husband. I pulled Aiden's jacket and sneakers from the wardrobe and lifted him gently to put them on. He awoke then, enough to realise something was wrong. I kissed the top of his head protectively and there was an almighty bang from downstairs. Shit, they were back already? I checked the contents of my pocket before scooping up both Aiden and the bag ready to Apparate away. I heard Bellatrix's triumphant screech, I could only hope that she would distract them all long enough for me to do this...

I Disapparated into a rainy street in uptown New York. Across the street, tip for the doorman and lift to the twelfth floor. The man who opened the apartment door looked at me shocked for a second then admitted me to the living room. I had an inkling then of how Narcissa must have felt, barging into our house with demands to protect her son. I shouldn't have been so hard on her maybe, this wasn't a nice position to be in. We sat down and his blue eyes met mine. God he looked rough. Joey used to pride himself on physical perfection, perfect tan, perfect hair, perfect figure... Now his hair was a dirty unkempt brown, the tan had faded, there was a slight hint of a beer gut. But those blue eyes stayed the same, sparkling with the same fire mine did. I hoped that fire would be enough to protect Aiden.  
"So he's finally fucked you over then? Took him long enough." I decided to let the language pass for now. Aiden's safety was more important, was the only improtant thing left. Tears were still rolling down my face and Aiden reached up and wrapped his arms around my shoulders.  
"It's OK mummy." He kissed my cheek and I squeezed him back protectively.  
"He hasn't done anything to us." I reached for the envelope. "Here are the deeds to the house, the apartment, the heirships and custody forms for Aiden." He looked at me shocked, the question he didn't dare ask glowing in those eyes. "I'm sorry Joe, if there was anyone else I wouldn't..." I mean my husband killed yours, why on earth would you help our son? He tilted my head up to face his.  
"You're still my best friend Kait-cha no matter what he does to me." The nickname, a play on one of my middle names, reminded me of easier times. He took the forms. "How screwed are you?"  
"I don't think we're going to last the year out." It came out in a whisper, my voice almost breaking. "I need to know that Aidie's safe, that he won't be left - "  
"Like you were? I'd never let that happen." Reassuring words... As if anything could fix this mess. We cast the spell to protect the apartment together and then I turned to face my son, his eyes full of trust. More tears, God I was going to go back there a mess. And wouldn't that look marvelous?

"Aiden, can we talk a min?" I held both of his arms gently to let him know I needed his full attention. "Mum and Dad have to go away for a little while and you'll be safe here with Joey." I paused, waiting for understanding. He nodded, his mind already on Joey's widescreen television in all liklihood, unaware of the permanence of this. I closed my eyes for a second and let myself believe I was coming back for him. "OK baby, no matter what you hear and what people tell you remember that we love you more than anything else in the whole world. You promise you'll be a good boy? And you'll practice all your powers how Joey tells you?" Absent nodding, God letting go was so hard... I gave him one last squeeze, hugged Joey and headed back to face the music.

I made it three steps into the house before I felt it burn. So no cleaning up time then, I wished I'd had the strength to stay at Joey's that extra five minutes. Weakness would be the death of me. I bowed briefly, aware of the close proximity of some men I'd rather didn't see me bent double too long. "Where have you been?" Oh so casually asked, he knew exactly what I'd been doing, it was just a case of waiting for him to do something about it. I prayed Joey would be prepared.  
"Taking Aidie to a sitter sir, I thought tonight may be a little too much for him." I prayed he was in a good enough mood not to punish me, his greatest enemy had just been taken out of the fight surely.  
"Ah a mother's weakness. We will break you of it but not tonight. Your husband is cleaning himself up, I suggest you join him." A few snickers, yes I looked like shit but I was alive. Breathing, all limbs still attached and permitted a few minutes with the man I'd joyously committed the rest of my life to. I followed his scent to the top floor bathroom and slipped my hands around his waist. He had been stood in the mirror looking completely lost in thought, not a good survival trait around here.

"You OK?" I whispered. Nothing, no reaction, bloody sod all.  
"Where's Aiden?"  
"Safe." He was safe. When the Dark Lord took over completely we could go get him back. It was something to live for. Or try to live for anyway. "I hope you know what you're doing." I mumbled into his back. "They're gonna bring back witch burning just for you, you know that?" He turned to face me and cupped my face in his hands, forcing me to meet his gaze straight on.  
"There are worse ways to go." And with that he took my arm and led me back downstairs to face whatever hell was coming next. But we might just survive it after all.


	2. Chapter One: The First Mistakes

Maria drabbles but that's all Maria ever does. Drabble incoherently. She's a bit of a dumbass really but I wouldn't have a story without her would I?

Reviews would be greatly, greatly appreciated!

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Maria - AUGUST 1946

Oh hell.

I'd actually done it. It was no longer a dream, something I fantasised about everytime the fists landed. I was gone. I was AWOL, missing, presumed dead. And all I'd had to do was move to England. Well 'moved' implied that I'd found somewhere to live, got a job (a job? Me?) and settled down. I'd been living in this grungy pub for a week now and was no further forward than I had been six days ago. I was musing over this problem when He came in again.

He fully deserved the capital letter. He was gorgeous, blue eyes like the ocean, boyish looks that defied his age and, most importantly of all, power radiated off him in waves. Normally I'd have no worries about approaching a man for something I wanted but those days were over. I didn't have a bottomless expense account anymore and I wasn't paying with myself. Despite everything I still planned to save myself for marriage, tall dark handsome strangers or not. I settled for fantasising about the guy turning that wand on my bastard of a brother. Yeah, that was more than satisfying enough for now. He looked over at me and I realised I must have been staring. Great. He looked me up and down far too slowly to be decent, not that I blamed him. I was six foot tall, Latino, model looks and assets that could apparently drive a man to insanity. A damned pain when I was trying to stay undercover and fake my own death.

I was trying to figure out a glamour spell to fix the problem, dangerously immersed in my spell to be honest, when he sat down next to me. No friends, just him. He watched me until he had my full attention, not a hard achievement.  
"Chica, the Cortez's have a high price on your return. And here you sit without a care in the world?" He knew about the Cabal? How? Panic flooded through me, I wasn't a powerful witch at all - I had never paid enough attention in class. That's why a simple glamour spell was taking up so much time. I worked a few seconds on a cutting response.  
"Who are you?" Hmmmm... That could have been better.  
"My name is Tom and you are Maria are you not?" He asked me lots of general questions, seeming genuinely interested in me. I was flattered and when he offered me a hiding place for the night, no strings attached, I didn't think twice. He didn't think any less of the fact I had no active powers when all of my brothers and sisters were gifted and believed that there was power everywhere. I wanted to follow him to the ends of the world while he found it. He believed, correctly in my opinion, that those in power were weak and our laws unjust. Why should those of us with power be forced to hide while Muggles were given free rein to do as they pleased? When he told me he'd been trying to work up the courage to talk to me all week I believed him. His flattery was perfectly aimed, in other words he was exactly the kind of boy my mother had warned me not to go within touching distance of.

My mother had been a very boring woman.

Maria - AUGUST 1951

I sat in the board meeting trying to pay attention. I knew I had to for Tom, for the sake of our cause...

God I was so tired lately! I didn't know what wrong with me... Spying on the Cabals for Tom was tiring but not to this extent. I hadn't cast even a simple spell in months, I didn't party like I used to, all I did was keep up appearances for my brother and husband at the Cabal. And scarper over to England to give my information to Tom, everytime praying like a little girl that he would take notice of what I was doing, keep me for the night, promise me forever like he used to. He told me I didn't need to hear it anymore if I was willing to work for him with even half the commitment I promised. Work FOR him, not with him. I wondered when that had changed, how long it had taken me to notice the change. Not that it mattered, I was his now just as much as were the other men who had fallen for the same lies as I had. Convincing lies, lies with more than a grain of truth in them but lies nevertheless. And my whole life was committed to feeding those lies, his power, him.

On a friend's advice I took the small tube stashed in my bag to the ladies straight after the meeting. I waited three minutes and it turned blue. Shit, what did blue mean again?

"Red - Not Pregnant, Blue - Pregnant"

Oh shit. It had to be Tom's, I'd avoided physical contact with my bastard husband for over a year now. Tom said if I was good enough to him he would take care of the man for me. Would a heir be could enough? How would I hide? Where would I hide? I looked at the slight bulge, which I had put down to mere lack of exercise before now. There was a life in there. A life that was my responsibility to protect. I ran to the only place I could.

Maria - 13th FEBRUARY 1952

Adrienne Riddle.

The first Death Eater marked from birth. That had been her price of survival and I'd gladly paid it. I was to be returned to the Cabal, 'hostage negotiations' would close and the child would stay here. Child of Death...

And child of nature. She was a druid, I could see it in her eyes - the love of life and everything around her shining from her. She may even be Karnee but I prayed not. I tried to imagine Tom's reaction if she had a full set of three active powers along with shapeshifting abilities and a link to all that was alive. My brother didn't have the active powers, that was a reassuring thought. Benicio could only shapeshift and even then he hadn't been out to the forests in years so maybe he wasn't even connected anymore. Was it possible for a druid to become disconnected? I could only pray that it was, how on earth would she carry out her duties when life itself begged her not to? I prayed...

I prayed I'd made the right decision.


End file.
